Despite Everything
by Swythangel
Summary: Two beings fall in forbidden love. Overcoming the barrier of time, they have been granted three chances to find each other...the untitled teaser fic reborn ^^
1. Une: First Sight

Author: Swythangel   
Email: swythangel@hotmail.com   
Title: Despite Everything   
Type: 1/?, Series   
Teaser: Two beings fall in forbidden love. Overcoming the barrier of time, they have been granted three chances to find each other again in their reincarnated lives. But twice they have failed. This is their last chance. Will they be able to recognize each other before it is too late?   
Rating: PG –13 (to be safe…)   
Spoilers:   
Warnings: Shonen Ai, AU, definitely AU!   
Disclaimer: Weiß Kreuz is not mine…will never be mine but damn if that'll stop me from torturing their lives in my fics...   
Keywords: once I say it you'll know who this is about…so I'll do it in the next chapters instead :

This is my valentine ficcie offering, the teaser fic I sent last time. Somehow I have a feeling this isn't going to end on Valentine's day though…a well…those are the breaks.   
If this fic had a movie tag on it, I'd say this is a feel-good one. You know, overused plotline, sap, etc. etc. But it is Valentine's so you guys will have to excuse the sap ne?   
And by the not-so-subtle hints I dropped in this part, you guys should know what the pairing is grin Tell me ne? and I'll give you…er….i dunno…   
Ok, nuff said, onto the said ficcie…   
  
  
  


**Despite Everything**   
**Part 1**

I am No one. And I am Anyone. Sometimes I am Someone.

Confused? Don't be. It is only one of dozens of cryptic messages I have learned to espouse through the ages that I have been in this world. If you say it slowly enough, you'll understand what I mean. The phrases are mere truths of who I am, who we all are, under the human veneer.

I am no one. Here, now, floating through limbo, waiting for my last chance. I am a faceless entity waiting for rebirth, waiting until such a time that a body will need a soul. I could become anyone in the world, the possibilities are endless.

The moment I enter the world I become who I am to be. I become Someone. And this time it is my last chance to find *him*, to become *his* someone. My last chance before I lose all memory of what we mean to each other.

Three chances, and the first two gone. If I fail again, we would never be together, ever.

My last chance…I cannot fail.

***

**Genesis**

In the very beginning, I was an angel. We were all angels before we came into this world. I was one of the dominions, 1st order of the 2nd hierarchy. It was an existence fraught with peril and of course, happiness. Who would not be happy? Being with the Divine Being and fulfilling his Great Plan.

And I could have continued with this happiness if not for one simple fact…I fell in love, fell in love with the clumsiest seraphim God had created. He had this bent tweak on his halo from crashing into things so much.

He had crashed into me in our first meeting and I was about to glare at him for doing so when he gave me the sunniest smile in all of the heavens. I didn't stand a chance. He was, in one word, endearing.

Angels weren't allowed to fall in love. But I had…and he had. He being an ambiguous term since angels didn't have gender.

We suffered for a while, each trying to suppress the other's feelings. We were angels, we could not love. But as if some unseen force manipulated us, we kept gravitating towards each other, until at last we could not deny it. Being angels, we honestly told the Divine Being what we were feeling.

Through the divine grace of the Creator we were granted the chance to be together, as mortals. We were sent down to the earth, without our memories, to try and find each other. Three chances, He told us. If we couldn't find each other by then we would never be together.

The other angels told us that if we really loved each other, that love would see us through. But then again, they never really knew how screwed the world was. And how fate seemed to delight in fucking our lives.

Ooops! That's another thing only mortals know about…swearing.

***

**Une: First Sight**

I am or was Kiel, the first time I met him, the first time I fell in love as a mortal. It was an age where people were backwards, homophobic, to put it in this new world's terms. A good word, that. It precisely describes the situation and the people then. It was violent too, the countryside being torn by warring lords that the King could not control.

I was born of a noble house, a Duke's son. *I* was homophobic too. Or at least I thought I was. Up until the time I saw him.

Tamlin.

No, not the legendary figure of myths and legends. My Tamlin was an ordinary bard, though I would hardly describe him as ordinary. He who stood up to the sullen Duke's son who had almost run over a village child.

I remember it as if it was yesterday. I had been particularly angry with father for ordering me to wed a maid he had handfastened me to. A milk-faced little miss whose only words were "No, My Lord." and "Yes, My lord."

I didn't want to. Who wanted to spend the rest of his life with someone who did that? I was a particularly quiet young man, if I ever did marry her, it would mean hours of staring silently at each other. *Not* the sort of life I wanted for myself. I wanted someone I could talk to. I wanted…something…something I couldn't really describe but it hung heavy in my heart. And it was telling me that *she* wasn't it.

Father had argued that I needed an heir. A preposterous thought since he was hale and healthy. And I told him that. But he didn't listen.

That was why I was careening on the countryside with my horse, the groom miles behind me. I didn't even notice that I was approaching the village, or the little girl who ran across my path.

Only because of my more-than-adequate horsemanship was I able to swerve and avoid her, leaving me to deal with a bucking, rearing Thunder as I tugged sharply at the reins. I had only just gotten the horse under control when the groom arrived.

Being in a not-so-forgiving mood in the first place, it was no wonder I snapped at the girl…

//_"Curses! Belike you will watch where you are going next time."_

_The little girl burst out into tears. I don't blame her really. My glare drove grown men to sweat whenever my eyes fastened on them._

_A man, no, a boy really, comes out of the crowd to hug the little girl, glaring at me at the same time._

_"Twas your fault, not the girl's. You should have known better. *You* are the one with the horse."_

_I arched an eyebrow in surprise. Seldom has a man, and a villager, at that, raised his voice at me._

_"You cannot address His Lordship like that." My groom tells the boy off, affronted at the disrespect in the boy's voice. "He is the son of the Duke. Show more respect, peasant!"_

_The boy must have been a stranger, because everyone else in the village knew me and dared not raise their voice like this one has. And even now that the dawning realization of who I am has sunk in, the defiance does not lessen. In fact, his chin juts out all the more._

_"Duke's son or not, you shouldn't have shouted at the girl. You should have known better…My Lord."_

_The smile that comes to my face couldn't be helped. He intrigued me, this man-boy, despite his insolent air. I waved away my sputtering groom._

_"What is your name?"_

_"Wha…"_

_Confusion danced in his clear blue eyes. He had been expecting a fight and I hadn't given it to him._

_"Your name, boy. What is your name?"_

_"Tamlin. Tamlin the bard."_

_Ah, a bard. So that was the reason for his outspokenness. Bards had rare immunity in the kingdom, given rare privilege for the uses they had._

_"A bard? Superb, then you are invited to play at the keep this eveningtide. We will be expecting you."_

_I wheeled my horse around to go back to the keep so I could tell father what I did. And although father hated bards, he will agree to this, because I wanted to talk to this boy and nothing was going to stop me._

_Before I left hearing distance, I heard him ask one of the villagers for my name._

_"That was Lord Kiel, only son and heir of the Duke."//_

***

A flash of light distracts me from my thoughts.

It is time.

It is time for me to go back into the world to find him again. For the last time.

I head towards the light, knowing what would come next. I had done this twice before. A voice would tell me my name in the next life and my memories would be erased. All that would be left would be my yearning for my love.

I will myself to succeed. This time, I *will* find him. Because I do not want to let him go, not now not ever. I clutch the thought to my heart.

_/I will find you, wherever you are./_

"Ran Fujimiya."

Ran, that is my name now. And I remember only that as I plunge into the light…into another life…

_/Wait for me./_

TBC

^_~ Er, is it any good so far?


	2. Deux: The Other

Author: Swythangel   
Email: swythangel@hotmail.com   
Title: Despite Everything   
Type: 2/?, Series   
Teaser: Two beings fall in forbidden love. Overcoming the barrier of time, they have been granted three chances to find each other again in their reincarnated lives. But twice they have failed. This is their last chance. Will they be able to recognize each other before it is too late?   
Rating: PG –13 (to be safe…)   
Spoilers:   
Warnings: Shonen Ai, AU, definitely AU!   
Disclaimer: Weiß Kreuz is not mine…will never be mine but damn if that'll stop me from torturing their lives in my fics...   
Keywords: Romance, AU, Aya, u know who…, AyaxUknowwho ^^

Wai! Wai! Gomen siberian-chan for taking too long in writing. I was doing some other things that I almost forgot about this…whacks self>bad Swyth-chan! But anyway this is here ne? ne?   
Minna, as usual, I am asking for feedback ne? and some suggestions? I do not know just how to progress. But this definitely will be mushy gushy chuckle>Aa, you all should know me well enough to know that. grin>   
Alright I'm stopping with the babbling and on with the ficcie!   


  


**Despite Everything**   
**Part 2**

**Deux: The Other**

_/Wait for me./_

_/Yes, I will. I will wait for you. Through the ages I have waited, through lifetimes I have waited and I will wait for eternity, if need be, if it means we will be together eventually./_

I know he would not be able to hear me say it, not like I was able to hear his heart-thoughts. But still, knowing that, I willed the thought to him. 'Tis a human failing I have acquired, this. Hoping against the inevitable.

I wanted to say it as comfort, a goodbye until the time we would meet again as he went towards the light and his new life in the mortal world.

He didn't know how close we were, drifting in the void. Close enough to touch, if touch was a possibility in this form. How my heart yearned to be with him, to let him know I was there but that too was impossible.

But impossibility had never stopped me before. Seldom has it affected what I wanted to do, a fact that has gotten me into trouble more times than I could count as a seraphim and even more as a mortal.

_/We will meet again. No force on heaven or earth will stop that./_

Who am I? I was called Raine. And I was a thief. Before that, I was Tamlin the bard, and before that, I was the only seraphim with a bent halo.

Here, floating in the void, I remember everything, but I don't want to remember now. I want to remember when I am alive so I would recognize who he is.

I know it is an impossibility to remember who I was in my other lifetimes once I have been reincarnated. The principles of reincarnation state that all beings are reborn with no memory of their previous lives. Because if they remembered, it could cause chain reactions of consequences. Humans being what they are. Revenge and clan wars would continue unto eternity.

In other words, if humans were allowed to retain the memories of their past lives, we'd all be in deep doodoo.

But still…it would have been nice to remember…to know him at once and cut to the chase. I smiled to myself, as much as it can be described as a smile, seeing my formless state. I recognized my impatience for what it is. Through time and countless ages, I never changed. Physically yes and maybe in some things but inherently, I was still the clumsy, impatient, hot-headed seraphim he had known. Just as he had never changed. In all the times and places, we had remained, essentially, the same…

_//"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked the figure by the door. He had been staring at me for quite some time now and it made me uncomfortable though I didn't react until now._

_I had felt his presence almost as soon as he had entered the room eventhough he came in quietly. It was second nature for me to detect such things, seeing my profession._

_"You didn't take the posset. You're supposed to be asleep." He told me in a quiet, unemotional voice._

_I try to sit up, winced at the pain that stabbed at me from my back and fell back down. I settled for a grin._

_"I have never been good at doing what I was told to do."_

_His mouth twisted in a small smile. "That would not come as a surprise."_

_Strange to exchange pleasantries with the son of my worst enemy. Stranger still to find myself in a bed, my wounds tended to. And actually smiling at the magistrate's son. The smile disappeared and anger replaced it._

_"Why am I here?" I ask him, not wanting to engage in another dance of verbal sparring. "Why am I not in prison?"_

_Perplexity tinged my voice. I am confused, I *should* be in prison, not on this soft bed. Unless they changed the rules on stealing._

_"Why did you take the blame for the children?"_

_My heart beat faster, remembering what happened. He was talking about Carl and Katie, the new additions to my rag-tag family. I taught them the ways of the street, the way of stealth and shadows. Some might argue the morality of what I did, teaching children the ways of thievery, but in my opinion, best be a thief rather than be forced to be a whore. And there were a lot of whoremongers in the city._

_Besides, I just couldn't resist the hungry waifs that looked like prey on the streets, couldn't let them be the victims of fellow predators._

_Carl and Katie were new at thievery and hadn't known which people would be easy pickings. They had chosen this one – the magistrate's son. *Not* a good choice. Fortunately, I had been there to catch them before it had been too late. I had accepted their punishment instead._

_Forty lashes by the whip. Painful but I didn't complain. It should have been a chopped off hand after all. But this person, the magistrate's son, had interfered._

_Still, forty lashes hurt. It hurt like hell and I had fainted, only to come to here in this room with *him* staring down at me. I couldn't fathom why I was here at all. My mind turned the question over and over only to find nothing fit. And for a thief, that was the worst possible answer. It left me without any plans of escape._

_Why was I brought here in the first place…he obviously wanted something from me or I wouldn't be here. And his question…it surprised me. I didn't think he would be sharp enough to know what I did._

_/Damn if I'm going to answer him./_

_"Why did you interfere and lower the punishment? Why did you bring me here?" I countered._

_He arched his brows in surprise. He was obviously unused to being answered back to. Well, he had better get used to it if he intended to talk to me._

_"You would do well to answer my question first, *thief*."_

_The emphasis on my profession was intentional. He wanted to make me feel like I had an obligation to answer him just because he was who he was, making it sound like a threat. He had obviously never talked with my kind before then, because we were renowned for our stubbornness. Especially when it came to the nobility. Me most of all. I had the kind of impulsive stubbornness that put me into a wealth of trouble, like I knew it would now. Not that I stopped to think about it._

_"Whatever else I might be, Your *Lordship*, it does not give you the right to dictate to my person."_

_The silence lengthened as he refused to deign my insolence with an answer. He glared at me and I glared back, both of us not giving an inch, stubborn chins jutting out._

_Then the humor of the situation finally struck me. We resembled two mirror images with matching glares and jutting chins. And I burst out laughing, breaking the strained silence, eliciting a confused look from him._

_I was laughing so hard that I pitched forward, straining my back and reopening the wounds there. I gasped and fell back, pain replacing the laughter as stars danced in front of my eyes._

_"Are you all right?"_

_When the stars finally cleared from my eyes, I saw that he had moved to support me, sitting on the bed, only inches away, a concerned look on his face._

_The concern surprised me. Why would he, a nobleman, be concerned about a lowly thief? It was mind-boggling and very intriguing. It also redeemed him, making my anger evaporate. And I decided why not? Why couldn't a nobleman be friends with a thief?_

_Rules of society behavior were obviously not my strong suit._

_I smiled at him and extended a hand. "Let's start over. I'm Raine."_

_It was a test. A test if he'd get down from his high pedestal and meet me halfway. In the back of my mind, something was making me anxious, making me wish that he would take my hand, making me need to make friends with him. It confused me as I looked into his viridian eyes. Because I felt like I knew him when I know that I have never met him before._

_It was to my relief that he smiled a little smile and clasped my hand in his. "I am Leander."_

_"Now what was it you asked…oh yes! Why I took the blame for the children, yes?"_

_He nodded._

_"Because they're my family."_

_His eyes opened wide in surprise. And I smiled. I didn't blame him, everyone who I ever told that to had the same reaction._

_"Not my real family. My adopted family. They live with me. I couldn't just let them take the punishment. Besides they were too young." I shrugged._

_Something flitted through his eyes at what I said. And I wondered what he was thinking about._

_"I believe its your turn, my friend." I turned serious, expecting the worst he could ever say. "Why did you save me?" Because save me he did. I would have been walking around with only one hand if not for him. He had even had my wounds tended to. Surely there was something he wanted from me._

_He turned contemplative then. As if he was debating whether to tell me. Then he looked into my eyes and with all seriousness, answered me._

_"Because you intrigued me."//_

A light flashed in front of me, distracting me from my contemplation of my previous life and I step forward. Unlike him I could see the angel supervising the souls. I do not know why I could still see them but I did. And this one was familiar to me with his golden hair and dappled silver wings.

"Greetings, Septimus." I greet him.

"God bless you, Abiel or art thou Tamlin, or Raine..oh," He thought for a moment. "No, a moment, I have thy name right here." He shuffled through his paperwork, looking at me with a reflective look in his eyes. His next question surprised me.

"Tell me, Abiel. Is it really worth it? Is what thou trying to do worth giving up thy wings for?"

I blinked in surprise at his question. I knew that the other angels knew about our plight but I didn't knew they were curious. I smiled, answering without hesitation. "Yes, Septimus, it is."

"But thou have never really got together, haven't thou? Doesn't that mean that thy love for each other isn't that strong? Why dost thou exchange the happiness of heaven for a fleeting chance at this?"

Why indeed. What was it that drove me to him, attracted me so much that even heaven had lost its hold on me. And I used to love heaven and the Divine Being above all. What was it about him that made me this way?

I didn't know then and didn't know now. But something inside of me kept telling me that heaven would be nothing without him. And I always followed my heart. Despite everything that was against it, I knew I needed to be with him.

I shrugged. "I do not know why, Septimus. But I love him, and that is enough reason for me to try."

He shook his head. "Exchanging immortality for the fleeting chance at love. I fain do not understand thee at all, Abiel. But I respect thee. Art thou really steadfast then? For thy next life is fraught with mortal peril. If thou thinkest that thy past two lives wert arduous, those doth not even compare to thy next life. I worry for thee."

I was touched by his words. Septimus had been one of my closest friends as an angel. And he was concerned enough to give me warning. I lapsed into the old tongue, echoing him.

"I thank you, Septimus, for thy compassion. Truly art thou one of mine closest friends. But fear not, my friend. Though my road be arduous, I wouldst brave it still. For understand that nothing will come between he and I. This," I put my hand to my chest, "will lead the way. As it has always had before. And as the Divine Being's will be done, so too will I find him."

He sighed. "Truly, you have become more mortal than angel, Abiel. Thou dost echo their sentiments. No matter. I wilt not hold thee back any longer. God speed, Abiel. I wilt be watching over you. And God bless you." He stood up.

And I smiled, knowing he would now give me my name as a mortal and I would begin another life trying to find him whom I love. I could not wait.

Septimus passed his hand over my face and the last thing I remembered before I fell to earth was his kind voice whispering his last words to me.

"God speed, Ken Hidaka."

_/Through ages and lifetimes I have loved thee. Wait for me beloved, I am coming. And this time…this time, we will be together…despite everything that might bar me from you./_

TBC

^_~ Its Kenken! Its Kenken! bounce> Of course everyone who emailed me actually did know ne? Especially with the 'clumsy angel with the bent halo' part in it chuckle>great guess! This is really getting harder to write though…


	3. Trois: Beginning Anew

Author: Swythangel   
Email: swythangel@hotmail.com   
Title: Despite Everything   
Type: 3/?, Series   
Teaser: Two beings fall in forbidden love. Overcoming the barrier of time, they have been granted three chances to find each other again in their reincarnated lives. But twice they have failed. This is their last chance. Will they be able to recognize each other before it is too late?   
Rating: PG –13 (to be safe…)   
Spoilers:   
Warnings: Shonen Ai, AU, definitely AU!   
Disclaimer: Weiß Kreuz is not mine…will never be mine but damn if that'll stop me from torturing their lives in my fics...   
Keywords: AyaxKen, Aya, Ken

Minna-san! waves at you all> can anyone still remember this one? ^o^ It was my supposed valentine offering ahohoho! Anyway, I hope you guys still like this ne?   
Lessee I need to say something..oh right […..] – denotes subconscious thought. And I mean non-conscious in its truest sense. >. I'mnot making any sense am I? Ah well! Thank you to everyone who wanted to still see this. ^o^ Now I'll stop babbling and let you read in peace.

**Despite Everything**   
**Part 3**

**Trois: Beginning Anew**

"Sayonara, Ken-niisan! Next week again ne?"

"Hai, hai! Now scoot you guys or your parents will have your Ken-niisan's hide ne? And then nothing will be left for next week. Sayonara! And take care on your way home, minna-san…"

I wave energetically until the last of them finally leave the field. And after the last pigtail and pudgy hand finally disappears from the ridge, I flop down onto the grass, tucking my hands behind my head to enjoy the last few minutes of sunlight.

I love the sun and I adore watching it. Anytime of the day. Sunrise if I can rise early enough, which doesn't happen often, I might add. Sunsets, always, especially when I finish soccer practice with the kids.

One might call it an obsession. This fixation on the sun. Youji calls me crazy for loving it. But then again Youji is more of a night creature than anything else so I disregard his opinion.

Watching the sun makes me feel alive and warm all over. Having the sun's rays touch my face stirs something inside of me that vaguely remembers a time and place when I was perpetually in sunlight. Or maybe I'm just being delusional.

In any case, it revitalizes me especially after missions. And goodness knows how cold I feel after each mission. Sometimes I feel that this life does not suit me at all. I sigh.

No, I don't want to think about that at all. I need to think of something else. Like my little charges…aa, the little bratlings. I love them dearly eventhough sometimes I feel like pulling my hair out in frustration at their antics. They are little angels, complete with hidden horns and tails.

"Oi, Ken-niisan!"

I blink in surprise as I identify the voice.

"Aki? Why are you still here?"

The red-topped bundle flops down beside me and smiles at me with her gap-toothed smile.

"Aniki is late. I didn't want to wait alone way over there. Besides I want to be with my Ken-niisan!"

I smile at her. "Just stay quiet ne, angel? Ken-niisan is tired and wants to rest."

Of course I don't exactly expect her to be quiet. I would sooner expect it to start snowing right in the middle of May than expect Aki or any of the kids to stay quiet for so long.

Though to her credit, Aki did try. For a total of 30 seconds, before she bursts out in a barrage of words and questions. Aa. Children just love questions.

"Are there really angels, Ken-niisan? I mean you always call me an angel and I know I'm really not. I'm not, am I? I mean angels are suppose to be very very good and I'm not good. Well sometimes I'm good but sometimes mommy says I'm naughty. But then angels aren't naughty are they? How do they do that Ken-niisan? Are there really angels like that?"

The trick to answering children's questions is to just pick one question and answer it. Ignore the rest. Children have small attention spans, they'll forget the rest once they get their answer.

"Yes, Aki-chan, angels do exist."

"Demo…how do you know there are angels, Ken-niisan? Have you seen one? I think you're just joking me…or are there really angels? I mean do they have wings and everything?"

Of course, answering one question generally leads to another and another after that. Kids…

"Yes, Aki-chan. They have wings and everything. Big nice feathery wings that can make them fly."

"You're just making this up, Ken-niisan. Where are the angels then?"

"Well, I'm looking at one right now."

"Ken-Niiiiisssaaaaannn!!! I don't have wings. I can't be an angel."

I gather the howling bundle in my arms and give her one of my sincerest smile.

"Oh you were an angel, Aki-chan. Long ago, before you became this little naughty girl who likes to scream." I tease her. I love teasing my charges.

"A little angel who wanted to be reborn in this world. And if you're really really good, you'll be an angel someday again too." I add for good measure.

"But HOW do you know? And why did I want to go into this world?"

Why indeed…maybe its because she wanted to torture poor souls like myself. Only kidding of course. I chuckle inwardly.

"Maybe you have a mission or something to do here ne, Aki-chan?"

Aki's face wrinkles in troubled puzzlement. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. Now I can feel more questions wanting to burst out of the small one's mouth.

But before the little girl can ask another question, a quiet voice intrudes.

"That boy is searching for her."

Only one person in all the world would interrupt like that. The voice belongs to someone I know very well. I look up in surprise to find cool violet eyes looking down on me and Aki. And I blush. And no it can't be because of him. It must be because of the physical exertion I was indulging in. Yeah, that's it.

"Wai! Wai! It must be aniki! Sayonara Ken-niisan! Oh, and thank you, Mr. Red-haired Man, for telling me."

Aki jumps up from my arms and runs towards the field where a teenage boy of about 15 years of age with the same red hair that Aki has is looking around the soccer field.

"We have a mission for tonight."

That is all he says as he waits for me, standing in the shadow of the tree. No "Hello Ken!" or "How was soccer practice?" or even "Ken." I can't help but become just a bit annoyed. I mean how much can it hurt to say my name. You'd think he'd burst a blood vessel if he did.

Guess its time to go. I heave myself to my feet and self-consciously pull out the grass that stuck in my shorts and shirt. I let my sports bag hang from my shoulder as I walk beside him, remaining quiet because I don't exactly know what to say to him.

If he was Youji I'd probably be trading taunts and joking around. If he was Omi, I'd be kidding around and acting all big brothery but with Aya I am at a loss. Not that I don't want to talk to him because I do. He intrigues me for some reason. But how does one start a conversation with someone who can probably rival a wall when it comes to quiet?

And it doesn't help that I punched Leader One his first day at Koneko either. I sigh to myself.

We start walking back to Koneko in silence, me thinking about him and him thinking about who-knows-what when the question suddenly slices into the almost-tangible silence. It's so abrupt that I half-expected the air to scream in anguish as the words fall from his lips.

"Do you believe it?"

I raise my eyes to him in perplexion.

"Believe what?"

"Do you believe in the things you said. About angels."

He doesn't look at me. Instead he is looking at a point faraway in a preoccupied manner.

I can't believe it. Aya is actually starting a conversation with me. The world must be coming to an end.

I shake my head. I should really stop maligning him like this.

I think before I answer his question in the hopes that I might have an honest to goodness conversation with Aya Fujimiya, mystery man.

"Yes, yes I do. I think we were all angels. And you?"

"No. I think its crap."

If his last question was a sword slicing into the stillness, this particular statement rang like a pistol, discouraging me from asking anything after that. And with that he pulls away, walking more briskly, leaving me staring at him in dismay.

I walk more slowly, pondering how or what triggered him to ask that. And why he was so rude with his last answer. Somehow I feel that it was intentional because underneath the rudeness, a brief flicker of something was reflected in his eyes. And if I am to describe it, I would have called it hope.

"You believe in angels more than you think, Aya Fujimiya."

This makes me smile for some reason. The fact that seemingly cold callous Aya can still believe in angels fills me with a warm glow inside myself, a giddy happiness I cannot explain. Nor do I want to. It is enough for me to know.

_/You would have made a very beautiful angel./_

_[Through ages and lifetimes I have loved thee. This time, we will be together.]_

TBC

^_~ Ken is a bit ooc? Well it is AU...ahoho! Comments onegai? As usual you know I love hearing from you lovely people.


	4. Quatre: Flickerings of the Past

Author: Swythangel   
Email: swythangel@hotmail.com   
Title: Despite Everything   
Type: 4/?, Series   
Teaser: Two beings fall in forbidden love. Overcoming the barrier of time, they have been granted three chances to find each other again in their reincarnated lives. But twice they have failed. This is their last chance. Will they be able to recognize each other before it is too late?   
Rating: PG –13 (to be safe…)   
Spoilers: Episode 4   
Warnings: Shonen Ai, AU, definitely AU!   
Disclaimer: Weiß Kreuz is not mine…will never be mine but damn if that'll stop me from torturing their lives in my fics...   
Keywords: RanxKen

Omi: looks at chapter title>Oh No! Here we go again…   
Swyth-chan: Ahohoho! Damn straight, Omiitchi! I just have to have my say that this is the nicest title yet.   
Omi:dryly>Mostly because it has Quatre-kun's name on it.   
Swyth-chan: Damn straight! wide grin> Anyway, I hope you guys are still reading this ne? This is a very short chapter, mainly because I just wanted to put some of Ran-kun's thoughts in.   
Ran: sniffs> Fine, put me in as an afterthought why don't you!   
Swyth-chan: whacks Ran>Well at least you're one of the main characters. Omi and Youji aren't even mentioned yet.   
Omi & YOuji: Yeah! Unfair. We should report you to the union.   
Swyth-chan: sighs and ignores the two> On with the story….

Legend:   
/words/ ----thoughts   
//words// ---- flashback/memories   
[words] ---- unconscious thoughts

**Quatre: Flickerings of the Past**

I watch in the shadow of the tree as my fellow assassin, Ken Hidaka, teases the little girl. I watch silently and listen to the lilting voice, a tiny throbbing pain doing a steady staccato beating in my chest as I remember my sister. She was once the same inquisitive little thing this precocious child is now.

"Maybe you have a mission or something to do here ne, Aki-chan?"

_//"Of course I'm right, Katie-girl. Many of us are angels who need to fulfill God's great plan on this earth. Ask Leander here." //_

I blink in annoyance. There it goes again. These flashes of something I cannot even begin to comprehend. They come at the strangest of times, mostly when I am near this perplexing talking dynamo that is Ken Hidaka.

"That boy is searching for her."   
I say, my eyes trained on a 15-year old redhead that bears a resemblance to the girl in Ken's arms, my tone abrupt. Its purpose is to banish the flashes of memories that belong to another time, another place, another person. Certainly not Ran Fujimiya's.

I see Ken staring at me with inquiring eyes. I almost forget why I am here.

"We have a mission."

Ken's face has an unreadable expression on it. Something I cannot understand. What? Did I say something wrong?

I start to walk away to conceal my confused expression. Why is it that I never know how to act when he is around?

A sigh rises up from his vicinity and before I know it he is walking beside me. We walk in silence for a while. But even I with my much-vaunted tolerance for the quiet have the need to talk now and then. So I burst out with the question niggling my mind.

"Do you believe it?"

My query seems to hang in the silence, a deep slice in its almost-tangible state. Perhaps I said it too abruptly. This is confirmed as I look at Ken and see an expression of perplexity on his face.

"Believe what?"

I can almost see the surprise and the confusion in his open eyes, almost read his thoughts in those eyes. Friendly, warm eyes. Eyes that seem to call out to something in my innermost soul.

_[Raine's eyes…]_

Who the hell is Raine?

"Do you believe in the things you said. About angels."

A slightly impatient tone enters my voice, not because he didn't get what I said but because I keep hearing these voices inside my head. I do not mean it to sound so abrupt because for all my outward indifference, I want to hear his answer. It is somehow very important that I do.

"Yes, yes I do. I think we were all angels. And you?"

I? How can I believe in angels when I can't bring myself to even believe in a Divine Being?

I am fully convinced there is no God. Because if there is a God, and He is as good as they say He is, He wouldn't have let that happen to my parents and my sister. No, I can't believe in angels at all. Nor in the fact that we were all angels. If we were all angels, then God shouldn't be punishing us here on earth. He shouldn't be able to stand having His children suffering.

_//"Heya, Leander, back me up will you?"___

_I sigh and look at the little girl in Raine's arms. And with all the sincerity I can muster I smile and answer her.//_

"No, I think its crap."

Even as I say it, I look at him and see the open friendly face being outlined by the last rays of the sun, making Ken glow with an unearthly light. Such an innocent face for someone who bears so many burdens.

I wonder again how he can possibly smile even after Kase's betrayal or how he could still have had hope that Kase was innocent. Maybe it just isn't in Ken Hidaka to not trust people. Because he almost always tries to see the good in them.

_/If I ever need to find an angel in human guise, Ken Hidaka, I would start with you./_

If there are more like Ken Hidaka here in this world, then maybe there are angels who walk the earth. Shit! What a thing to think about. I shouldn't be dawdling when there is a mission to do.

I walk faster, leaving the soccer player behind in startled silence.

_//"Many who fall here are angels, Katie. Trust Me."___

_As soon as the words leave my lips, Raine's eyes lights up in gratitude and he smiles at me. A smile that makes me feel warm all over even though the sun is barely shining.___

_Oh, yes, Katie, there are angels on this earth. The one holding you can never be anything but an angel.___

_The stray thought gets away from me as I look at the former thief lying on the grass near where the tree where I am leaning my back against. Yes, Raine must have been an angel.//___

_[Just as Ken must have been an angel…]_

TBC   
^_~ Thank you for the lovely comments, nice people! glomps people> Please don't stop! ^-^


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